Holly is a symbol of goodwill and joy. In the Victorian language of flowers, holly means foresight. Holly is seen as a symbol of good luck in both Christianity and Islam. But most importantly for me, it is said that disputes are often solved "under the holly tree"

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Thursday, June 14, 2007

"Jesus Camp" (Christian Zionism)

Last year, the documentary "Jesus Camp" was released to the general public. This documentary was indeed a chilling expose of a fundamentalist Christian children camp and it's indoctrinizationtechniques, taking young children and forging them into soldiers to "fight the enemy". Who does the founder of this camp believe is the main enemy of our nation? Islam amongst other such "enemies" After this documentary was released, the camp was closed. But this very type of hateful device tactic is STILL taking place in fundamentalist churches to one degree or another across America.

Tongues of Fire

'Jesus Camp' Illuminates the Political and Religious Education of Evangelical Christian Children

"Jesus Camp" opens with an unsettling sequence, during which young Christians -- dressed in camouflage and with their faces painted brown and green -- enact a warlike ritual dedicating themselves to fighting for God. Soon after, we meet the film's stars: 12-year-old Levi, who wears his hair cut short except for a rat's tail, declares he was saved when he was 5 "because I wanted more out of life," and now aims to be a preacher; Rachael, 9, who longs to be an evangelist and is practicing spreading the Word at her local bowling alley; and Tory, 10, who loves to dance but shamefully admits that sometimes she doesn't dance only for Jesus, but also "for the flesh." And we also meet Becky Fischer, the outgoing, charismatic leader of a youth ministry in the kids' home state of Missouri, who serves as a counselor at a summer camp called Kids on Fire in (wait for it) Devil's Lake, N.D.

Bookended with news reports about the resignation of Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and the announcement of the nomination of Samuel Alito to take her place, "Jesus Camp" takes as its subject the most colorful arm of Christianity, that of charismatic Pentecostalism. Although firm numbers are difficult to nail down, research from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life indicates that Pentecostalism may account for between 15 and 20 percent of evangelicals, who number around 52 million adults in this country, and who in recent years have emerged as a powerful political force.

"Jesus Camp" is composed of images of kids being radicalized spiritually and politically that will be heartening or chilling depending on the viewer. There are moments sure to set secular humanists' teeth on edge: when Tory's mother, who educates her kids at home, dismisses global warming and declares once and for all that creationism provides "the only possible answer to all the questions"; or when Becky excoriates Harry Potter to nervous-looking youngsters ("Warlocks are enemies of God!"). And it's hard not to feel a little frightened watching Becky and her fellow leaders goad their young charges into speaking in tongues, or joining in chants like "This means war!" and smashing coffee cups that symbolize secularized government.

But those who find "Jesus Camp" frightening, Grady says, may be missing an important lesson. The evangelicals are "not doing anything illegal," Grady explained recently in a phone interview. "In fact, they're embracing and utilizing democracy to its fullest potential. There's no office too small, no political position that's insignificant [to them]. If I were to say I was scared of these people, then I'm scared of the very tenets of our political system."

Following are segments from "Jesus Camp". Unfortunately the entire documentary WAS available in segments but has been removed. So following are the remaining videos left available. You can go to google video and type in "Jesus Camp" and find other clips which are not labled, so therefore are out of order. Notice carefully in the first clip, just at 1:50 minutes into it , you will see the child waving a flag of Israel. These are the child-Christian Zionists par execelance in training.

This is the segment where Becky Fisher says she wants to train HER kids to be every bit as dedicated to the cause of Jesus as those children are in Islam, she wants them to be as "Radically willing to lay down their lives as the children are over in Palestine, Israel and Pakistan"